


A Hesitant Recall

by holybeans



Category: Homestuck
Genre: F/F, M/M, Quite Literally, nothing we havent seen in canon before, theres some violence and gore but its not that descriptive
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-15
Updated: 2018-08-15
Packaged: 2019-06-28 00:03:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15696093
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/holybeans/pseuds/holybeans
Summary: Sometimes Karkat wakes up and he's burning.





	A Hesitant Recall

Sometimes Karkat wakes up and he’s burning.

Whether the sleep is peaceful or hellish, he wakes up choking on a hot, heavy liquid that isn’t there as the rest of his body is aflame. Occasionally there are two sharp, piercing pains through his chest amidst the rest of the torture, perfectly placed over the holes on the sign of his sweater. It’s always momentarily, though, and fades not a minute after, no marks ever seen.

He talks to Dave and realizes he isn’t alone. Dave remembers flying, perhaps with a purpose of some sort, a battle, his mission cut short by two blunt forces punching into his torso. Then he falls. He wakes up after that, the agonizing sting still present. It lingers for only an hour or so, but attempting much physical movement is near torture.

They decide to go to Rose next. She claims to experience a similar keen torment to her chest after awakening some mornings, and it tends remain almost half the day. Kanaya would state that she wakes up and feels ablaze for just a moment, and then has no trace left of it ever occurring.

When they go to the others they find similar, and different experiences all around. Terezi, Jane and Jake all seem to experience the same stabbing sensation. Jade recalls a heavy, suffocating weight pushing down on her. Dirk says he sometimes feels as if he isn’t really there as soon as he awakens, like parts of him are missing. The seers are promptly asked for answers.

“So you’re saying in a specific timeline, we all died, and are now experiencing ghostings of said pain?” Karkat clarified as Rose, occasionally helped by Terezi, explained what was going on with her surprisingly limited knowledge. “Yes, Karkat, but we don’t know why. There are thousands of other timelines where we faced death, why is this particular timeline affecting us?” No one had an answer to Rose’s question, the atmosphere in the room dismal and the house silent.

Nightmares begin to accompany the pain. Karkat remembers lava now. He remembers running and leaping across platforms being so driven by anger he nearly left Kanaya in the dust as he jumped. But jumped for what? Why was he so angry?

His questions are answered the next night. Terezi, blindfolded, beaten and bloodied, caught in the claw of Gamzee’s fist, a sadistic smile ripped across his face. He leaped, ready to slash the throat of the fucker, so caught up in the anger and rush he only notices he’s vulnerable and open when Terezi’s cane punctures him twice. He fell, his last sight of Gamzee grinning wildly as if he’d won a prize, before being engulfed by the molten liquid covering the planet.

The troll woke up crying that night, his sobbing startling Dave awake. He was in too much anguish to feel guilty, and wailed into his matesprit’s arms. Sometimes nights are as bad as that one. Sometimes they’re worse, and Dave just has to watch him scream, unable to do anything. Sometimes he wakes up and feels nothing at all.

Sometimes, Karkat wakes up and he’s burning.

**Author's Note:**

> if ur looking for an explanation i don't have one  
> follow me on tungl http://kushwarrior666.tumblr.com


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